A mini tutorial for simple gifts...

I have signed on for Judith's 'Early Bird Christmas Crafting'. Have you?

You can see the button on my left hand side-bar (click on it and you'll arrive at Judith's blog!)

I like the idea of being prepared for Christmas with gifts already made, but mostly I want to have 'gifts in general' for any occasion right on hand, and really I have wanted to do this for ages, but....life and other exciting things come along and I forget.

Now, thanks to Judith's foresight, I have the incentive to do more than just talk about it.

One of the first things Judith asks you to do is buy a small journal/notebook and cover it - this will be where you write down the names of all those you need to make gifts for. I bought my journal earlier this week, and my plan for tonight was to make my journal cover.

However, I had been cooking all afternoon (have you visited my foodie blog yet?), and was really looking forward to sewing tonight, but I was so tired! Originally I'd been going to use denim in the cover (as part of my June Jeans Challenge), but my brain and my hands just couldn't 'get it together' when I lay the journal and the denim side by side for inspiration.

A quick prayer, and a new plan formed - forget the journal cover tonight, and make some presents instead. So, I thought I'd share an idea with you as these little items took me just minutes to make!

Materials needed:

1 vintage embroidered doily or runner (mine cost me 50c)

2 small mother-of-pearl buttons (had them forever)

a length of narrow white satin ribbon (been in the ribbon box for eons)

2 cakes of scented handmade soap (bought this morning for $2.30 each)

My doily/runner was rectangular so I cut it into 3 pieces as I wanted to use the ends only.

Take the end piece and fold it over inside out, and slip stitch along the seam (to keep the lovely eyelet embroidery showing)...

Sew a seam along the raw edge opening, turn right side out and press.

Sew a length of the white satin ribbon to the very centre of the back, and secure in place with a small mother-of-pearl button.

Choose a gorgeous scented soap...

Pop your soap in the pretty bag and tie the top closed with your ribbon!

What a gorgeous gift! I make these and store them in my linen cupboard. When I open the door to replace sheets I am met with the exquisite scent of roses...and of course my bed carries that fragrance later when I place the sheets on our bed.

I made another fragranced soap sachet with the other end of the doily.

Not wanting to waste the middle section of the doily it occured to me that I could use it for my journal cover. After all, I am a rose lover and a romantic at heart, so a denim covered journal isn't really me, is it?

I found some lovely rose fabric in my stash, some pretty white cotton lace, and 2 white vintage buttons. I set to work laying it all out...

I added Pellon and some pink tonal lining fabric, and look what I had in my hands just 30 minutes later...

 For under $10, and after less than an hour's sewing, I have two gifts and my gift-planning journal. 

 Don't you love that feeling you get when you accomplish a task? I do. :-)

Hugs

Jenny

xxx